It has long been recognized that the kinetic energy of motor vehicles moving along a roadway provides a potential source of energy for producing electricity, and several approaches for utilizing this potential source of energy have been previously proposed, as for example in prior U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,849,386 and 3,885,163 and in British Pat. No. 1,332,202.
In each of the above noted prior patents, various mechanical arrangements are provided for causing the weight or momentum of the moving vehicle to rotate a shaft from which a conventional electric generator may be operated. Because of the size and complexity of the mechanical arrangements and linkages required, these approaches are impractical, and to applicants' knowledge have never been commercialized.
The present invention provides for generating electrical power in a much more practical and straight-forward manner than as proposed in the above noted patents.